Friday, October 30, 2015

The holster ordered from Charter Arms arrived today. Fast service, no complaints but a grumble about $8.00 Shipping and Handling and postage of only $2.40.I'm not happy with any amount of trigger exposed but a very firm tap gives a result as seen in the picture. Adjusting the Phillips head screw doesn't make any difference.Can you lubricate these types of holsters? Any advice from readers will be gratefully appreciated. I've never owned or used a Kydex holster. Perhaps some type of lube would help getting it further into the holster so no part of the trigger is exposed.I like the way the holster grips my Wranglers even without a belt. Very secure riding on my more than ample hip.

Overall, I am pleased. One of the reasons I wanted to buy this from a local store was the probable need to do some minor adjustments for best fit and function. Guess I will just farm boy it.

Who does she regard as her core
supporters? How about 2,800,000 Federal Employees? Supposedly there are around 26,000,000 veterans. That number is, to me, suspect. The American Legion has about 2,400,000 members in about 14,000 posts. In many places the VFW has merged their posts with the American Legion. I think most veterans are like me, 2, 3, or 4 years active duty and then out. Certainly not as motivated to vote as a block as Federal Employees still on the job.

She is sending a message to her core
supporters that they are safe, that she won’t be “cleaning house”, and it will
be business as usual under her administration.

What these folks don’t realize is she
will throw them under the bus if she thinks it is politically expedient (after
she is elected, of course).

Give her and Bill credit. They have taken
graft and bribery to a level unprecedented in human history. Lying as an art form.

Wednesday, October 28, 2015

I like old steam engines and stop and look at them when I have the time. Located in Gering, NE is a Baldwin 2-8-0 slowly falling apart. It served as a yard engine for many years until it was pushed across from the depot into a city park sometime before 1970. When was it built, I don't know. Baldwin built this type from around 1890 to around 1920. Innovative for it's time, it could move large loads but at a sedate speed. It has been sitting for 45 years and looks like nobody has kept it up. Something of a testament to the workmanship that went into it that is is still intact.

My interest in these goes back to being a railroader's kid for ten years. An early memory is three 2-4-4-2 Mallets on the D&RG pulling a long train of military tanks during the Korean war. Later, I got to ride in those Mallets used as helpers from Tabernash, CO to the West entrance of the Moffat Tunnel. Heck of an experience for a fifth grader.

When the winds aloft are from the West and a lot of moisture is in the air, you get something looking like this picture. Not every day, and not for miles and miles, thankfully. Think of a wave breaking over a reef. The break here returns to ground about 40 miles East of the Colorado Front Range. The area from the base of the Front Range to where the wind returns to the Plains is called the "rain shadow". From the air you can see the ground going from green to brown.Flying through this will give you a five to ten minute break from the tedium of your cross country flight.Seasoned airline passengers in and out of Denver have a good reason to depart/arrive either very early in the morning or late at night.

Sunday, October 25, 2015

For many reasons, I try to buy from local owned small businesses. I was in the market for a holster for my .44 Special Bulldog. Went to a local firearms store and asked them to order one for me. They were not enthused and never got back to me. Today, I ordered a holster directly from Charter Arms.Big deal? No, this was a trial balloon. I wanted to see how they handled a small pain in the ass order.Early next year I plan to make several firearms purchases as some financial dealings come to fruition. This store will not get my business. Most of my business life involved sales, customer relations, and building networks. I regarded any sale, no matter how small, as an opportunity that might never come again. I've no patience, nor confidence, in those who will blow off a small sale as not worth their time. What the fuck else do you have going Bubba? Oh yah, your game on your laptop is on pause. I should add the owner was present and could observe what was going on.

Saturday, October 24, 2015

What follows is a whining blog from a
bitter clinger. You may wish to skip it.

Being interested in politics and the
world my grandchildren will grow into, I read a lot of political “stuff” and
Facebook postings. In addition, I try to maintain a circle of friends and acquaintances with different
viewpoints. This from my belief you shouldn’t spend all your time with those
who already agree with you.

What I’m hearing and reading from the women’s
point of view is I’m irrelevant. We (women) are going to win, you (men) are
going to lose, so just shuffle off somewhere Grandpa and shut up. Oh, but feel
free to keep your wallet open so you can expunge some of the guilt we’ve
assigned you.

Given the results of the last two
Presidential elections, they may be right. As they savor their victory, they
will ignore one of the founding principals of this country. That is protection
of minorities (of any kind) from the tyranny of majorities. We are a Republic,
not a Democracy.

In almost every situation where there is
a winner and a loser, the winner, if wise, strives to keep the goodwill of the
loser. It seems to me that our country has become a land of scorched earth,
winners take all, and losers get fucked. I hear this loud and clear from Shillary's supporters.

As sure as the sun rises, there will
come a time when national unity will be needed for us to survive as a nation. My
fear is national unity will never again occur. I can't see any President, current or now in the running, who has the stature to accomplish it.

As I look around, I realize the country I
grew up in, worked and paid taxes, voted, served in the Armed Forces and all
the other citizen’s punch card requirements is gone. What it is now is not something I can
believe in. I’m rapidly reaching a point where I will look after me and mine
and the hell with anyone else.

That I can even contemplate that attitude
saddens me more than I can express. I’ve always believed if you are going to
bitch about a problem, you damn well should be able to offer a solution or just
keep your mouth shut. I have no solution other than to continue to protest,
vote for those candidates that pass my smell test, and rant on social media.
YMMV

Wednesday, October 21, 2015

Sugar beets are about as ugly a crop that
you can find but a big part of the region’s economy. They are usually a
rotational crop alternating with corn. Harvesting is a three step process.
First, the green tops are mowed. Then a beet digger, usually pulled by a
tractor, scoops them up and then they are hauled to the processing plant.

Years ago they were dug by hand and
tossed onto wagons. Very labor intensive, and back breaking work. The Brush, CO
High School still honors the effort with their official team name, “Beetdiggers”.

About 20% of the beet is sucrose which
will yield 2-5 teaspoons of pure sugar after processing.

In the 1980’s sugar processing got
hammered. A large number of processing plants were owned by the Hunt family.
When they went bankrupt speculating in silver, many plants were shuttered never
to operate again.

The remaining ones now stockpile beets
which will last several months if properly mulched.

Being downwind from a beet processor in
operation will clear your sinuses.

A few years ago I needed to take a mental
health break from the car biz. My sister knew a man who needed a beet truck
driver. I was hired and worked the harvest. Those that know me well know I
should never be allowed in anything bigger than a one ton pickup. I have
relatives who can back a triple through a needle but that particular gene
passed me by.

A double axle 30’ truck that scaled, loaded, around 48,000 lbs
was a reach for me. Fortunately I never hit anyone or anything. Due to a faulty
tailgate latch, I did scatter about 15,000 lbs of beets along a five mile path
through Evans and Greeley, CO.

Next harvest I was back in the car biz. Surprisingly,
the truck owner did contact me to drive again. Even more surprisingly, he
remained friends with my sister.

Making my round this harvest season
reminds me of that time. Yeah, a Prius is more in line with my skill set.

Monday, October 19, 2015

My sister and I were raised with a strong work ethic. For better or worse, we passed it on to our offspring.Yesterday she and her assistant were hit by another vehicle. Her truck is a total loss. She and her assistant went to the hospital to be checked out. Nothing critical, but who knows long term? Both are hurting.Then my sister arranged for another vehicle. Tomorrow she is off to Wyoming to work five claims. She may be hurting but she rides for the brand.One claim is interesting. Sumdude managed to shoot his steering column. No other details available.Fun times ahead for someone. If you must hit someone's vehicle, do not choose an insurance adjuster.

Saturday, October 17, 2015

Had coffee today with a high school
classmate who was a feminist even in high school. While I don’t agree with her
on scores of issues, I respect her guts and commitment to what she believes.
She has lived for decades with death threats.

I’m not breaking any new ground here when
I report she said, “As a feminist I want to see a woman President in my
lifetime”.

I started detailing the corruption of
Shillary and Bubba; the Clinton Global Initiative and the Clinton Foundation,
etc. She wasn’t having any of it.

Then I mentioned Carly Fiorina. “No, no no, but she is better than
Sarah Palin.” Of course, me being me, I had to point out how “hot” Sarah Palin
is. Pushed that feminist button hard, then just grinned at her. Good thing we
are friends.

Then we started talking about our adult
children and some of the people in our mutual past.

Back to politics, I pointed out 49% of
the population are men and Shillery is doing a good job of pissing men off. My
friend didn’t see that as a problem. “Lots of men will vote for her”. She assumes all women will vote for her.

It saddens me to see an intelligent
person like her so committed to an ideology that no distractions are allowed.
It scares the hell out of me. I never expected the Lightbringer to get a second
term but he did. What if she is right
and Shillery is elected?

Perhaps we should be concerned about who
becomes her running mate. Lots of speculation about her health.

As to the GOP, I expect they will once
again snatch defeat from the jaws of victory by riding the Planned Parenthood
mule into the ground. If they were halfway smart they would be talking about
reforming Planned Parenthood, not destroying it. YMMV.

Monday, October 12, 2015

mentioned a professional wrestler he knew
as a youngster. Started a trip down memory lane.

Downtown Denver once had the Stockmans
Hotel, a large place that took up a city block. The “ballroom” was huge and was
the venue for wrestling and boxing. It would seat upwards of 3,500. Off and on during the 1960’s I worked
security. Our job was mainly tossing out drunks.

One night two wrestlers who hated each
other threw away the script and went at it for real. I think
wives/girlfriends/mitresses were the cause of the hard feelings. They were
pounding the shit out of each other. The promoter came running up to my partner
and I.

“Get up there and stop them”, he ordered.

“Uh, hell no”, was our reply.

Finally there was a winner. After he left
the ring, we willingly got in the ring and assisted the loser out to an
ambulance. Weren’t we nice guys?

The only wrestler I remember from those
days was Wahoo McDaniels, who also played for the Denver Broncos. A very nice
gentleman but I wouldn’t have wanted to irritate him.

Saturday, October 10, 2015

Two weeks ago we attended our maternal
aunt’s 100th birthday. Today was a gathering in honor of a paternal
aunt’s 80th birthday. This post is for those family members who
couldn’t attend but anyone is free to read it.

Wheatridge lies WNW of downtown Denver
about twelve miles and is near Golden. Starting in the early 1900’s it was
farmed in small parcels as truck gardens to supply Denver. Later, the area
raised carnations. Today it is part of the urban sprawl.

My great grandfather bought land with an
existing sod house and then built a fine brick house next door for his parents.

My grandfather homesteaded land West of
Maybell, CO (Moffat County) around 1913 and there was a steady migrating back
and forth between the soddy and the homestead.

These are photographs taken of the family
gathering and the Cider Festival, an annual event put on by the Wheatridge
Historical Society.

Here are some pictures of the ongoing
development by cousins of another 100 year old house on what
was once a truck garden. As you can see
they are using shipping containers. Progress has been slow as they have paid as
they built while upgrading the original house.

For all you who couldn’t attend, know we
had a grand time gossiping about you and telling lies. You should have come to
defend yourselves.

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About Me

Semi retired road warrior, car salesman, occasional repo man. Father of three fine sons. Once a Blue Dog Democrat. Once a soldier; once a pilot. Rolling along life's highway proving there is no fool like an old fool.